27 Simple Crockpot Side Dish Recipes

A slow cooker/crockpot has very quickly become the must-have kitchen gadget for the past few years. This handy little device can be used to make a wide variety of both main and side dishes, making cooking a breeze. 

Recipes such as cornbread, potatoes, and macaroni and cheese may be prepared quickly using a slow cooker. No matter what you make, the dishes will taste so good that guests will think you’ve been in the kitchen working hard for hours.  

If you’ve bought a slow cooker but don’t know what to make first, then check out this list of the top 27 simple and easy crockpot side dish recipes to try!

1. Potatoes Ranch Style

Ranch dressing is an American favorite. Many people love this sauce so much that they add it to every meal. If this sounds like you, then you have to give this recipe a try!

Consider this side dish to be a warm version of potato salad, it’s chock full of soft red potatoes, cheese, garlic, and ranch dressing with a creamy texture.

The potatoes need a few hours of cooking time, but after they are done, all that is left to do is combine the remaining ingredients with the potatoes and serve.

2. Scalloped Potatoes

Scalloped potatoes are a bit of a tricky dish. Many people have prepared this dish only to realize that the potatoes in the middle were still raw.

This is because it can be pretty hard to keep the interior of the potato fluffy without also browning the exterior.

Luckily a slow cooker is here to save the day! Because the entire dish will heat up evenly, there won’t be a single potato that isn’t fully cooked.

If your pot can go from the stovetop to the oven without damage, you can try finishing it off under the broiler for a few minutes to get that delicious, crispy top.

3. Boston Baked Beans

If you love baked beans, then you’ll love these chunky, rich, and savory beans, with only a trace of sweetness. The best part is that they’re loaded with bacon.

If possible use smoked bacon in this dish as this will give you even more flavor and texture in the dish. 

Before adding the bacon and onions to the pot, you must first reduce their volume in a skillet.

Molasses is ideal for imparting a sweet and smokey flavor, but if you are unable to get any, you can substitute black corn syrup.

4. Stuffing

Stuffing is a classic roast, Thanksgiving, or Christmas dinner side dish. It’s so popular that you probably won’t have any spare after dinner. 

A slow cooker allows you to prepare a sizable batch without making the stuffing too dry.

Be sure to use stale bread so that it can soak up the maximum amount of liquid. After everything has been mixed, it only needs four hours on low heat.

5. Creamed Spinach

The combo of vegetables and cheese is unbeatable. The cream cheese, stock, mushroom soup, and Italian dressing come together to create this delicious side dish. 

It’s much simpler to work with frozen spinach compared to fresh spinach because fresh spinach would take up the entire pot and wilt down to very little volume.

Because frozen food does not lose as much volume during the cooking process, you will be able to make a bigger batch and have plenty to feed everyone in your home.

6. Mac & Cheese

Macaroni and cheese is possibly the most famous dish to come from the USA. Everyone has their favorite version of this dish, usually their mother’s or grandma’s very own recipe. 

This well-liked recipe may be taken to the next level by preparing it in a slow cooker or crockpot since all of the ingredients can absorb the taste of the dish while it simmers.

When preparing this dish, you might want to think about doubling or tripling the number of ingredients called for so that you have enough for additional servings and can enjoy some delicious macaroni and cheese in the days to come.

7. Rice

When you just have a small amount of storage, it is impossible to store a lot of expensive gadgets. While getting a rice cooker is tempting, especially if you have rice a lot, if you already own a slow cooker there’s no need to buy this as well. 

Because rice can make such a wonderful accompaniment to a wide variety of recipes, a good idea is to cook up a large quantity of it and store it in the refrigerator so that it is ready to use whenever you want it.

In the slow cooker, it will cook evenly, and you won’t have to worry about the bottom of the dish burning, which is a common issue when cooking rice the usual way on the stove.

8. Red Cabbage

When there’s a lot of food on the table, it’s wonderful to have a colorful assortment of different kinds of dishes. This recipe, which features red cabbage, more than meets the criteria.

Everyone will be grabbing a spoonful of this spicy and soft side dish as soon as they see its brilliant hue.

If you want your cabbage to have more or less of a sweet flavor, feel free to tweak the ingredients to suit your taste.

9. German Potato Salad

This potato salad, which is quite similar to scalloped potatoes, will always provide you with potatoes that are delicate, tasty, and cooked to perfection.

The sauce is made using onion, bacon, cider vinegar, and seasoning, and it’s thickened with a tiny bit of flour to give it the perfect consistency.

As soon as everything is mixed together, you will have made a warm and pleasant side dish that will be loved by everyone.

10. Balsamic Brussels Sprouts

Cooking Brussels sprouts in a slow cooker is an excellent alternative to roasting them, especially if you find that the sprouts start to burn during the roasting process.

Because bacon makes everything taste better, it would be a good idea to add this and some thinly sliced onion to the pot as well. 

If you already have that extra taste, you don’t even need the balsamic reduction that you were planning on using. However, it will make the food stand out!

11. Sweet Potato Casserole

This sweet potato casserole requires little effort, just like making mashed potatoes does. You will have to take extra caution when peeling the sweet potatoes as the skins are fairly harsh and can ruin the texture of the creamy dish.

Using pumpkin spice in this recipe is an excellent idea, but feel free to adjust it to your taste by adding more or less ginger, cinnamon, or allspice.

After the potatoes have been cooked and mashed, spread butter, brown sugar, and chopped pecans over the top and allow them to melt into the potatoes.

12. Italian Mushrooms

This dish with only three ingredients is not only simple and rich, but it’s also an excellent method for cooking mushrooms that doesn’t require the use of a frying pan.

Mushrooms cooked in an Italian style in a crockpot produce a rich side dish that is full of flavor and pairs wonderfully with steak or grilled meat. They are also a fantastic choice to add to layered green salads.

13. Colonial Hot Buttered Rum

Slow cookers aren’t only perfect for making food, they can also be used to create some unique after-dinner drinks as well! 

The ingredients for this hot rum cocktail with whipped cream and spices can be combined in a slow cooker, and after it’s ready, it can be served directly from the appliance.

Maintain a “warm” setting in the crockpot, and have an iced bowl of whipped cream ready to go.

14. Cheesy Broccoli Casserole

If covering vegetables in cheese increases the likelihood of people eating them, then you should do it! And the level of cheesiness in this casserole is through the roof.

The broccoli is cooked in sauce and water until it is tender, and then a generous amount of cheese is sprinkled on top of it. Everyone, from the youngest to the oldest, will be begging for more!

15. Cornbread

if you prefer your cornbread to be moist and packed with flavor, then try this recipe!

Preparing it in a slow cooker will result in cornbread that is not only moist and tender but also bursting with flavor.

Just keep in mind that you need to line the pot with foil to make the removal process simple and easy.

16. Corn On The Cob

This recipe for buttery corn is simple to prepare and takes very little time overall.

Before adding the butter and allowing it to melt over the sweet corn, you will need to first simmer the corn in some water. This step is similar to what you did with the potatoes.

This recipe is ideal for serving as a side dish at a barbecue or as an accompaniment to a rotisserie chicken for dinner during the week.

17. Creamed Corn

Even if you love corn in every way, this creamed corn might become your new favorite!

What could be more delicious than sweet corn that has been tossed with butter and cream cheese? While this delectable dish would typically be cooked on a stovetop, this can be quite a hassle, and it’s very easy to burn the corn. 

The slow cooker takes all of the stress out of making this meal. It also saves you a lot of preparation time. Some typical creamed corn recipes ask you to heat the milk with the butter and then melt the cream cheese over low heat. 

Not here! Simply toss everything into the slow cooker, and then step back and watch the magic happen.

18. Mashed Potatoes

This is a great dish if you want to keep everything easy when cooking. After a hard day, the last thing you want to do is come home to a kitchen full of dirty pots and pans. 

With this recipe, you can make the best mashed potatoes you’ve ever tried, and there’s hardly any mess afterward! 

These mashed potatoes are especially delicious, and they are comfort food that can be served alongside practically any main dish.

They will take on a beautiful taste after being cooked in stock with rosemary, and when you mash them through the cheeses and butter, they will become quite creamy.

19. Green Beans And Bacon

Green beans have a lackluster flavor overall, but when prepared in a low-temperature oven with bacon, onions, potatoes, and stock, they’ll become everyone’s favorite vegetable. 

Cooking the bacon and onion will take the longest time. The rest of the ingredients will be cooked in the pot together until they are soft and flavorful.

You can change the salt or garlic levels to your taste if you these flavors to become stronger. 

20. Rosemary Honey Beets

Slow-cooking beets in a crockpot is an excellent way to bring out their full flavor and ensure that they are cooked to a beautifully soft consistency.

Because roasting beets in the oven can take a long time, using a slow cooker is a convenient method to prepare all of the ingredients without having to monitor the cooking process.

21. Sweet Potato Wedges

There’s no better method for producing a large number of sweet potatoes that are moist, soft, and have a pleasant taste.

The wedges have a sweet and tangy finish from the orange juice and maple syrup. You can substitute stock for the orange juice if you don’t want the citrus overtones to be present in the dish.

The potatoes will be ready to eat after only a few hours, which is very convenient. If you have any leftovers, then a great way to use them up is as a puree for sweet potato pie! 

22. Glazed Carrots

To accompany roasted chicken, pork loin, or even meatloaf, spiced carrots in a glaze are an attractive, scrumptious, and healthy option for a side dish.

After being cooked, the carrots will get a nice and tender consistency, and the glaze may be easily made thicker by removing the lid from the pot during the final 15 to 20 minutes of cooking time.

Place in a large serving dish and top with honey before serving.

23. Hot Chocolate With White Sugar

This cute and lovely mug of hot chocolate will be great for the colder months of the year when you want to get all cozy by the fire. 

When traditional holiday drinks like dark and rich hot chocolate aren’t quite cutting it, we think it would be just as much fun to have this alternative.

This hot chocolate is significantly sweeter than the typical hot chocolate mixes since it’s made with condensed milk, white chocolate cocoa, and more sugar.

But if you can’t indulge in anything particularly sugary during the holiday season, when can you?

24. Garlic Mashed Potatoes

This recipe calls for potatoes to be cooked to perfection, but instead of thoroughly mashing them, they are left whole. This method is more convenient and helps the potatoes to keep all of the dish’s delicious flavor.

These garlic smashed potatoes use baby potatoes, which have the perfect texture, and combine them with cream cheese and nutmeg to create a creamy side dish that you can’t wait to dig into!

25. Cracker Barrel Fried Apples

In this incredibly easy preparation, the apples, brown sugar, spices, apple juice, and cornstarch are put into a slow cooker and allowed to simmer on their own.

After three to four hours, the apples will have become juicy and soft while the sauce will have thickened and become glossy.

26. Lipton Onion Potatoes

Depending on what onions you use in this meal, it can have a spicy flavor, be subtle, or be overpowering. 

These garlic and onion-roasted potatoes are to die for, and you can let your creative juices flow when you decide how to present them. 

You can set the potatoes into any pattern you like, but most people go for a fancy and complicated-looking spiral. 

Be sure to oil the pot so that nothing gets stuck to the bottom.

27. Green Bean Casserole

This green bean casserole, which is another home-grown food that provides comfort, is quite simple to prepare.

The soup in the recipe is cream of mushroom, but for something different, you could instead add chicken or cheddar.

In either case, combine all of the ingredients in the pot and then set the timer for two to three hours.

The topping of crispy onions is without a doubt the standout feature of this dish, so add as many as you’d like. 

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